There have been more than 5,300 COVID-19 deaths in the United Kingdom and the country is currently in lockdown, with people only allowed to leave their homes for essential travel or to exercise once a day.

In Birmingham and the nearby area there have been more than 500 fatalities.

Construction work cannot be done from home and social distancing is difficult on building sites, while the supply chain is also susceptible to be impacted.

While there has not been universal closure of construction sites in the UK, magazine Building reports that Lendlease - the principal contractor for the Athletes' Village - has suspended work on all of its sites.

Lendlease is also principal contractor for the Perry Barr Residential Scheme, which is seeing in excess of 1,400 homes built on the site of the Athletes' Village for use following the Games.

Last week, construction on Sandwell Aquatics Centre was paused for 24 hours to allow the contractor to ensure necessary safety measures could be implemented.

Wates Construction began major construction on the venue for swimming and diving at Birmingham 2022 last month.

Sandwell Aquatics Centre is the only sporting venue for Games events being built from scratch. 

Renovation work on Alexander Stadium, which will host athletics and the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, has not yet begun, with McLaughlin and Harvey the firm awarded that contract.

The Games are due to run from July 27 to August 7 in a year where the sporting calendar looks set to be increasingly crowded, with many events pushed back to 2022 after the Olympics were postponed until 2021 as a result of the pandemic.